Saturday, June 11, 2011

Rose Petal Jam

This morning I logged on and checked a few blogs in my feed reader -- once again coming upon a post about Rose Petal Jam from Norma. For some reason that I cannot explain, I decided then and there that today I would make this jam, because if Norma keeps making it year after year, it has to be good.

We have three main rose varieties. First the big, old rose bush that was here when we bought the house:

Then there are the roses we planted on the side of the house -- which looked pretty bad last year, but seem to be doing well so far this Spring:

And finally, the most recent addition is in the back corner of the yard, which is somewhat shady, so they are not flowering yet. (Ooooh! Maybe that means I can make more jam later this summer!)

I used a mix of the two that are flowering at the moment, and when I mixed them up in the blender...

Love that color!

The entire process was very easy, quick and painless. And I discovered another reason to love my new dishwasher -- the "sanitize" feature! So easy to get canning jars ready by running them through that cycle.

I ended up with a pretty good supply. Considering there are only 3 of us, this should last a while. And isn't it so pretty?

A note on the flavor. Norma described it as "Summer on a spoon," and I would have to agree. I'm sure the variety of rose determines the flavor to a certain extent, and mine really did taste a bit like the petals smelled. I bit floral, a little like ripe berries and a pop of brightness from the lemon. Highly addictive!

Comments

Beautiful! I've always wanted to try this as well, but none of the roses around us are fragrant. There's a neighbor with some nice ones up the street, but I think she'd have a cow if I asked if I could grab a few cups of petals. Enjoy!